Blog

Deck the Halls with Holiday Deer Decor

‘Twas the weeks before Christmas and all through the house, the Holiday Deer Decor was shining! Featuring the outdoors is a wonderful way to celebrate the season. And, these beautiful deer creations are just the thing to bring the outside in and add a festive Winter touch to your holiday. Let’s journey through the house together today and make a plan for cozy handmade deer style in every room!

Let’s start our Holiday Deer Decor in the kitchen with this lovely little dish towel designed by Bev of the Flamingo Toes blog. Perfect for you or delightful as a hostess gift, Bev’s sweet towel can be made from a length of toweling you sew up or a pre-made, purchased towel. Her instructions for creating the three elements of the plaid and lace border are excellent and you’ll love the quick fusible applique deer head centerpiece. And, if you love those “Bottle Brush” trees, there’s a link to those in Bev’s tutorial, too. What a great use for your empty Coats and Clark thread spools! Click here for the Deer Dish Towel tutorial.

Now Bev of Flamingo Toes takes us into the living room for a cozy Stenciled Deer Pillow. Stitched from flannel, this comfy pillow is a charming piece of deer decor that will be fabulous all Winter long. Bev added personal touches of a bow tie and puffy pom-poms to her pillow design. That leaves the door open for any style you would like for your stenciled deer! Button embellishments, a bit of machine embroidery or a little bling would be fun, too. If you’ve never stenciled before, you’ll love Bev’s clear directions and feel like a pro in no time at all. Click here for the Stenciled Deer Pillow tutorial.

If fusible applique is more your pillow style, you’ll love the darling deer decor I found on The Craft Patch blog. Perfect for your bed or couch, designer Jennifer includes a deer template and instructions for fusing Mr. Deer and creating his braided yarn scarf. I suggest sewing his scarf on rather than “poking holes” in the fabric as the tutorial suggests. It will be sturdier and prevent your pillow top from raveling! Jennifer’s post offers directions for two other Winter-style pillows to go with your deer, so you’ll have a whole room full of coziness! Click here for the Fusible Applique Deer Pillow tutorial.

Moving to the family room tree, here’s a little deer decor charmer to create a bit of forest magic for Christmas morning! Designed by Ula of the Lulu and Celeste blog, he’s stitched from linen and wool felt. You’ll love Ula’s tips for working with felt! Her sweet felt deer is first fused, then stabilized and stitched. Add hand or machine embroidery with deer-colored thread and white for the falling snow. Once embellished, little deer is mounted in a 5” embroidery hoop and ready to hang. Add a bit of ribbon, string or twine and this beautiful ornament will be perfect for the wall, your tree or to give as a gift. Click here for the Felt Reindeer Hoop Ornament tutorial.

For the dining room wall, let’s stitch up a Wall Art Stag Head that will make a bold statement in our deer decor. Claire of the Pillar Box blue blog designed an easy to make fabric stag stitched from under a yard of fabric stuffed with a bit of fiber fill. Make him Wintery for longer use, or choose a holiday print to match the season. You may want to entwine his antlers with lights or small ornaments, too! Following Claire’s steps, you’ll make your stag any size you please, then stuff him and his antlers using her excellent stuffing tips. In just a few hours, the Mighty Stag will be ready to adorn your walls with festive handmade style! Click here for the Wall Art Stag Head tutorial.

Now let’s get dimensional with the fabulously a-deer-able Fabric Deer Head from Helen at Bustle and Sew. Just right for the entry wall! Full of marvelous details, this essential piece of deer décor can be stitched from wool felt, tweed, linen or an upcycled sweater. Add a background that hints of the season and a hand knit or stitched-from-fabric scarf to keep Mr. Deer Head warm for the Winter. Helen’s wired antler instructions are full of images to walk you through their creation and well worth the fee for her downloadable pattern. Click here to purchase the Fabric Deer Head pattern and instructions.

This beautiful stand-alone cushy deer is the final touch in our foresty line-up. Deer decor for the kids you can pop in every room! Stitch up this jointed-leg cutie in Tilda’s florals or holiday prints and let the kids enjoy hands-on fun with your deer décor. You may want to plan a whole herd! Featured on the Crafts Beautiful blog, the templates are free but require a minute or so of registration. It’s a beautiful design and well worth the time! Supplies include fabrics, felt, plastic pellets, fiber fill, buttons and beads. If your holiday visitors include littles under 3, be sure to choose thread embellishments instead of buttons and beads. Click here for the Tilda Reindeer tutorial.

Annette Millard began sewing at the age of three, made her first dress at ten and is always happiest with needle, fabric and thread in her hands. Annette feels very privileged to have spent most of her work life in the sewing industry and loves teaching, making her own handmade wardrobe and writing about sewing. She spent over ten years as the newsletter and web site content writer for the Pacific Northwest's largest locally-owned family of fabric stores and is now thrilled to have the opportunity to share her passion for sewing with the Sewing Secrets community. Follow Annette and more of her sewing adventures on her own blog, www.sewfullife.com.